Family Reads

Our First Guest Reviewers

We have a special treat for you tomorrow — our first guest review! From the time we launched Family Reads, we always hoped that it would grow beyond the three of us to include some of you. We all share a love for books and sharing them with our children. So many wonderful books and so little time means that we're missing a lot of great reads!

Not any more! Starting tomorrow, we'll get to enjoy a few more delightful books each month. Two terrific ladies have joined Family Reads as guest reviewers and will be sharing some family favorites with all of us. We couldn't be happier to welcome them both and can't wait to discover new books right along with you.

First up is Gina Clifford. By day, Gina is an Internet guru. By night, she is the math and science instructor for her home schooled son. Gina is also the author of the eclectic home school blog Spotty Banana, where she shares information on all sorts of subjects.  She enjoys finding fun math and science-themed books for her son, who is a fanatic like her. Gina's blog is a great resource — definitely check it out.

We'll have more soon on our other, equally talented guest reviewer shortly. If you've been thinking about contributing a review or two (and we know you have), we'd love to share them!

Stop by tomorrow for Gina's first review and say hello!

Chasing Vermeer

Chasing Vermeer

by Blue Balliett
© 2004, 254 pages Level 4 (all about levels)Learn More on Amazon

 

Mysterious letters delivered in the middle of the night. Secret codes. Pentominoes. An art history scandal. Recurring patterns...or are they coincidences?

A smart, richly layered mystery, Chasing Vermeer weaves in an impressive measure of culture and history as the story unfolds. Sixth-graders Petra Andalee and Calder Pillay find themselves in a unique position to track down a Vermeer painting that has been stolen en route to their home town of Chicago. Clues pop up in unexpected places and it's up to them to decipher their meaning. The story and illustrations are crafted in such a way that invites us to join in the sleuthing, which makes it an even more satisfying reading experience.

Chasing Vermeer happens to be the current pick for Al's Book Club for Kids on the Today Show website, where you'll find a book excerpt, illustrations, and a Q&A with the author. Scholastic also has some cool Chasing Vermeer activities on their site, including a pentominoes puzzle.
 
Chasing Vermeer is one of the books that convinced me to start dedicating my personal reading efforts to juvenile fiction again (even though I'm not so juvenile anymore). I loved everything about it, and the characters Petra and Calder have lingered with me in a way that I almost forget I don't really know them. I can't wait to see what Blue Balliett has in store for us this May with The Calder Game!

Finish with a Flourish

You already know that we love books at our house, but we also think reading should be really fun. One of our favorite things to do is to celebrate whenever we finish a book. It started many years ago when I was reading a book with Ben over a couple of weeks and we wanted to surprise Lori when we finished. She was in another room, so when we read the last page, we slammed the book shut with great enthusiasm. We got just the reaction we wanted from down the hall while Ben and I giggled on the couch — "You're kidding! You guys finished already?"

Ever since, the book slam has been the required finale to any book (with suitable carefulness, of course). Wherever each of us is in the house, we always know when someone (usually Ben) has finished. And we always congratulate the reader and ask how the book was. Since December, the next question has been, "Is it review worthy?" The hardest part is for Lori and I to remember not to slam our books triumphantly late at night when the rest of the house is asleep!

This is how we like to celebrate a good book, along with the time and dedication it takes to finish one. Whether it's a playful slam, a sweet treat, or a simple high-five, look for small ways to make reading a big deal in your house.

p.s. We're guilty of really enjoying words and grammar here as well, and often spend way too much time searching for the right word. Here's the definition of flourish, which we found to be the perfect choice to describe our little tradition: a bold or extravagant gesture or action, made especially to attract the attention of others.

The Cat Came Back

The Cat Came Back

by Fred Penner
© 2007, 32 pages Level 2 (all about levels)Learn More on Amazon

 

If you've ever had a cat, you know it's pretty difficult to discourage them from doing anything they want to do. In our house, disciplining our cat doesn't mean she'll stop the undesirable behavior. It just means she knows to run away even more quickly when we catch her. In The Cat Came Back, we meet a strong-willed feline who will not be deterred when he decides he's finally found the home he's been looking for.

For his new owner, the cat targets a farmer named Mr. Johnson. But Mr. Johnson does not want the cat and tries to find him an alternate abode.  After several attempts, Mr. Johnson gets more and more desperate and tries sending the cat off on a pirate ship, stashing him on Santa's sleigh, even launching him on a rocket to Mars.

"But the cat came back the very next day.
The cat came back—we thought he was a goner.
But the cat came back.
He just couldn't stay away."

Based on a folk song by the author (but with a slightly different ending), the text definitely has a lyrical feel to it. The illustrations do a great job of capturing the book's silly spirit. The Cat Came Back is a fun read-aloud, and is enjoyable for cat-lovers, who will surely understand the cat's determined behavior, as well as cat-detesters, who will be amused at the thought of a cat hurtling through outer space.

Letters from Rapunzel

Letters from Rapunzel

by Sara Lewis Holmes
© 2007, 184 pages Level 5 (all about levels)Learn More on Amazon

 

I devoured Letters from Rapunzel in a few quick gulps. Written as a series of letters, lists, and short essays; the format deserves partial credit for my speedy reading.  But the honest, funny main character and her quest are really why I raced through the pages.

The story begins with a girl who calls herself Rapunzel, because as a twelve-year-old stuck in the Homework Club, she feels trapped. Rapunzel uses her time there to start writing letters to a mysterious post office box number she found on a ripped up piece of paper in her father's favorite chair. She hopes this unknown recipient can help her in her quest to free her father from the evil spell that has seized control of his life.

In reality, the evil spell is clinical depression and Rapunzel's letters chronicle her initial refusal to accept her father's illness and then her struggle to understand its hold on him. The story never reads like an after-school special; instead, it moves along like a mystery. And the answers Rapunzel finds have just as much to say about her as they do her father.

The frank and humorous tone of the letters keep the mood of the book lighthearted despite its weighty subject matter. Rapunzel is a clever girl and it's easy to identify with her point of view as she points out just how ridiculous school can be.  "And it's the only thing keeping me sane while we review how to set up word problems again. Except Mrs. Seisnek says we should really think of them as word OPPORTUNITIES. Ha!"

Though our library categorized Letters from Rapunzel in its Juvenile Fiction section (and not Young Adult), I'm still calling this a Level 5 book, because an older reader might be better equipped to understand depression as well as some of Rapunzel's behavior which shouldn't be imitated.

Letters from Rapunzel is Sara Lewis Holmes's debut novel. I can't wait to read what she writes next! Until then, I'm looking forward to digging around in her blog.

A new feature for you!

Hello reading friends! We're winding down after a lovely Easter yesterday and enjoying one last day of Spring Break here in Texas. We hope you had a wonderful weekend with your family!

Of course we've been reading books during our time off and look forward to sharing some of them with you in the coming days. But first, we want to point out a new feature which we hope will make your time on Family Reads even more fruitful. In the righthand toolbar, you'll now find a handy search box! Whether you're looking for info about a particular title or want to find an idea we shared, just type a few words in the box and you'll be directed to a Google results page. Scroll past the obligatory ads, and you'll see all the relevant results from Family Reads.

You can also browse our reviews by clicking any of the categories on the left. For instance, you can easily find all the reviews of Level 2 books or books featuring cats. Enjoy!

A quick answer...

...from you, our loyal readers!

Last Friday, we asked for your feedback on whether or not you enjoy the link to Amazon in our reviews. We really appreciate your many comments. The response was unanimous - keep the links! Many of you enjoy reading more reviews and also like the ease of ordering when the local library doesn't carry a book. Plus, Amazon often sells used copies as well.

So, we'll happily continue to include the links. Thanks for helping to improve the site! We'll have more questions for you in the weeks ahead.

Bonus tip: Ever curious what might be reviewed in the near future? Visit the homepage and checkout Current Reads on the right-hand side. You'll find a handy list of what all of us are reading. If the books pass our rigorous quality control department, a review is usually just around the corner. Enjoy!

Spring Break Boredom Busters

As the novelty of Spring Break starts to fade and every kid within a five-mile radius seems to be out of town, our parental responses to "I'm bored, what should I do?" may become a bit, shall we kindly say, edgy. It's time for backup—preferably some mind-sparking activities that won't take all day to prepare or clean up after. Here are some things to do and sites to visit that might help at least a few minutes fly by:

• Start a word collection like Selig in The Boy Who Loved Words. Just make sure to provide a collection of cut-able publications to get things started!
• Write a letter like the boy in If You'll Be My Valentine. How about one to your pet?
• Or, take a lesson from Ike, and write a letter from your pet. Ben did a podcast one time from the point of view of our cat Mango and it was hilarious! Just Grace takes this a step further and creates a cardboard cutout of her neighbor's cat and then photographs the feline around town to create postcards that she sends to the neighbor from her pet.
• If you never had a chance to visit the site of Owly author, Andy Runton, now would be a great time.
• Take this opportunity to try a fun reading challenge. Better yet, make up your own!
• Check out Storynory and download some free audio stories.
• Make a list of Good Things like Mr. Putter and Tabby.
• Why not break out the video camera and record your kids telling a story?
• Write a little book like Library Mouse. This fantastic post from SouleMama on making books with and for kids is great inspiration.

Add a comment below if you've got some word-friendly ways to keep kids busy!

The Boy Who Loved Words

The Boy Who Loved Words

by Roni Schotter
© 2006, 40 pages Level 2 (all about levels)Learn More on Amazon

 

Some people collect stamps. Some people collect stones. Some people collect baseball cards. At different points in his life, our son has collected all of those and more. Though one thing he's never tried to collect is words. But, Selig, the main character in The Boy Who Loved Words, chooses to do just that.

Selig loved everything about words—the sound of them in his ears (tintinnabulating!), the taste of them on his tongue (tantalizing!), the thought of them when they percolated in his brain (stirring!), and, most especially, the feel of them when they moved his heard (Mama!).

Whenever he hears a word he likes, Selig shouts it loud, jots it on a slip of paper and stuffs it into his pocket. Unsurprisingly, this attracts the notice of his schoolmates, who nickname Selig, "Wordsworth" and label him an oddball.

One night, lonely Selig has a dream in which a genie gives him some wise advice. Selig has found what many people spend their whole lives looking for—a passion. Now he just needs to find a purpose for his passion. What can he do with all those words? Selig sets off on a journey to find his mission in life and realizes it's as simple as spreading the word—sharing his words with others!

There are some great things going on in The Boy Who Loved Words that definitely make it worth your while: embracing who you are, learning to share your passion, and, my favorite, seeing words as something to love simply on their own. While the vocabulary in this book is somewhat daunting in an SAT kind of way, don't let that scare you away from sharing it with your kids. It's good to come in contact with words we don't know and figure out what they mean. Plus there's a handy glossary in back to help you along. And the effort will be worth it when you and your children make some new word-friends!

The Pilgrims of Rayne (Pendragon, Book Eight)

The Pilgrims of Rayne (Pendragon, Book Eight)

by D.J. MacHale
© 2007, 547 pages Level 5 (all about levels)Amazon Reviews

 

The Pilgrims of Rayne is the eighth book in the spectacular Pendragon series. It is even better than the book that precedes it, The Quillan Games. I mentioned much of the format and basics of the series in my review linked to above.

The Pilgrims of Rayne is set on the idyllic territory of Ibara. Idyllic except for the fact that the government is keeping secrets from its people about the territory's past. This book is a very important installment in the series, and focuses more on the battle for all of Halla and the Travelers than just Ibara. The Pilgrims of Rayne is a must-read book for any Pendragon fan or anybody who likes fantasy. I'm looking forward to the next part of this series-Raven Rise-which is set to be released this May.